Jose Canseco Speaks Out on A-Rod Suspension

By ETONLINE STAFF

August 06, 2013

Alex Rodriguez got swept up in one of baseball's most far-reaching punishments ever this week, and ET's Brooke Anderson caught up with A-Rod's former mentor, Jose Canseco, getting his take on the ballplayer and his suspension.

Thirteen players (including All-Stars Nelson Cruz and Jhonny Peralta) were penalized for their relationship with the anti-aging clinic Biogenesis of America, but the MLB reserved the most severe punishment for A-Rod. The 38-year-old third baseman has been suspended through the 2014 season.

A-Rod is now seeking to appeal the suspension and even though the two are no longer friends, Canseco, 49, agrees that the sentence may be too harsh.

"If he's under the category of first-time offender, it's way too much," said Canseco. "You cannot just create a special law or rule for Alex. You just can't."

It's now been 10 years since Canseco has spoken to A-Rod, as the two had a falling out over a situation involving Canseco's ex-wife.

"I found out who A-Rod really was back then," said Canseco. "When we used to work out together, he was a very nice, humble guy. He changed a lot in a period of two or three years."

Canseco, who released a tell-all in 2005 alleging the rampant use of performance enhancing drugs in baseball, became a workout partner with A-Rod when he was only a teenager. Canseco says that he introduced A-Rod to a man that was involved with PEDs but can't say what happened following their meeting.

Canseco maintains that he's never witnessed A-Rod use PEDs, but he speculates: "I think he started realizing that, 'If all these other players are doing it, why shouldn't I be doing it?'"